Parotid glands are the largest pair of glands among the three salivary glands in the human body, located in the narrow gap below the earlobe and behind the jaw, which can help us beautify the contour of our face and also secrete a large amount of plasma to help us digest food when we eat. However, the parotid gland can also get sick, and you can’t avoid getting traumatized, getting inflammation, or developing a tumor. How do you know you have a parotid tumor? There is a true story that a middle-aged woman, when washing her face, unintentionally touched a lump below the earlobe on one side, which was not painful, not itchy, and could be pushed, so she went to the hospital and was sure that the lump was from the parotid gland. This is a typical example of discovering a parotid tumor on one’s own. In another scenario, a parotid tumor is discovered by one’s surrounding family and friends. The person notices an asymmetry in the shape of the underside of the earlobes on both sides of the ear, with one side being slightly more elevated than the other, which is aesthetically displeasing to the eye, until the person seeks medical attention and is diagnosed. Parotid tumors can also be detected by doctors when you visit your doctor for other medical problems. With today’s emphasis on health, regular checkups have become a way to invest in your health. Detecting parotid tumors during a physical exam has also become a viable way to go. What can I do if I have a parotid tumor? Thankfully, about 75% of parotid tumors are benign and can be eradicated by the internationally recognized surgical procedure of superficial lobectomy of the parotid gland. Other parotid malignant tumors vary in malignancy and can be controlled through a combination of surgically based treatments. What are the risks involved in undergoing parotid surgery? There is a very important nerve running through the parotid gland, the facial nerve, which controls the movement of the facial expression muscles and enables us to express joy, anger and sadness freely. Once this nerve is destroyed by a tumor or damaged during surgery, facial expression will be weakened or even lost. The good thing is that our department now has an instrument that can help identify the facial nerve during surgery, the facial nerve monitor, thus enabling better protection of the facial nerve. Postoperative patients with parotid tumors face numbness of the earlobe to varying degrees, which is due to the routine severance of the great auricular nerve to fully reveal the tumor during surgery. Currently, I try to preserve one or more branches of the Auricular Nerve to minimize the numbness after surgery. A small number of patients may experience fluid leakage from the incision, which we have experience in preventing and treating accordingly. In conclusion, most of the tumors in the parotid gland are benign and can be treated by delicate surgery with good results at a small cost.